U L Washington (born October 27, 1953) is an American former professional baseball player and coach. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1977 to 1987 for the Kansas City Royals,

Montreal Expos The Montreal Expos (french: link=no, Les Expos de Montréal) were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal, Quebec. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in t ...

, and Pittsburgh Pirates. Washington played mostly as a

shortstop Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball or softball fielding position between second and third base, which is considered to be among the most demanding defensive positions. Historically the position was assigned to defensive specialists wh ...

during his career, and was well known for having a toothpick in the corner of his mouth while on the field and at the plate. The U and L are not initials, but rather are his given legal name.

Early life

Washington was born in Stringtown, Oklahoma, where he attended Stringtown High School and then the nearby

Murray State College Murray State College is a public community college in southeastern Oklahoma with the main campus located in Tishomingo, Oklahoma. It is named in honor of former Oklahoma Governor William H. "Alfalfa Bill" Murray. Murray State College also mai ...

Playing career

Washington is one of only three MLB players, along with

Ron Washington Ronald Louis Washington (born April 29, 1952) is an American former professional baseball shortstop. He played Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Minnesota Twins, Baltimore Orioles, Cleveland Indians, and Houston Astros. W ...

(no relation) and Frank White, who were products of the Royals Academy.

Kansas City Royals

Washington played for the Royals from 1977 through 1984. His best offensive season was 1982, when he batted .286 with 10 home runs and 60 RBIs – all career highs. Washington was on first base and scored on

George Brett George Howard Brett (born May 15, 1953) is an American former professional baseball player who played all of his 21 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a third baseman for the Kansas City Royals. Brett's 3,154 career hits are second-mo ...

's "pine tar" home run in 1983. In his eight seasons with the Royals, Washington hit .254 with 26 home runs and 228 RBIs. He was in four postseason series with the Royals — the 1980 ALCS,

1980 World Series The 1980 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) season. The 77th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the National League (NL) champion Philadelphia Phillies and the Ameri ...

, 1981 ALDS, and 1984 ALCS — batting 12-for-43 (.279) overall.

Montreal Expos

Washington was traded to the Expos in January 1985. He played in 68 games for the Expos as a

utility infielder In baseball, a utility player is a player who typically does not have the offensive abilities to justify a regular starting role on the team but is capable of playing more than one defensive position. These players are able to give the various s ...

, batting .249 with one home run and 17 RBIs. In November 1985, he became a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

Pittsburgh Pirates

Washington signed with Pittsburgh in January 1986. During his two seasons with the Pirates, he appeared in a total of 82 games, batting .207 with no home runs and ten RBIs, again in a utility infielder role. He was released by the Pirates in October 1987. "I won't go back to the minors, but I haven't said I've officially retired. If someone called and said they wanted me to play in the majors I'd go. I spent nine straight years in the majors, so going back to the minors was the toughest thing for me the past two years. At my age it got to where every time out, I was fighting pain off here or there anyway. I really admire the guys who play until they're 40," Washington said early in the 1988 season.

Senior League

Washington played for the

Orlando Juice The Orlando Juice was one of the eight original franchises that began playing in the Senior Professional Baseball Association in 1989. The team was managed by Gates Brown, while Dyar Miller and Bill Stein served as player-coaches. In their inaugur ...

of the

Senior Professional Baseball Association The Senior Professional Baseball Association, referred to commonly as the ''Senior League'', was a winter baseball league based in Florida for players age 35 and over, with a minimum age of 32 for catchers. The league began play in 1989 and had ei ...

in 1989, the team's only season.

Post-playing career

After his playing career, Washington coached and managed in the minor league organizations of the Pirates (1989), Royals (1991–98),

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

(1999), Minnesota Twins (2001–02), and

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eigh ...

(2003–14). In 1992, while coaching the Memphis Chicks, Washington appeared in one game as a shortstop, going hitless in two at bats. Washington went 1 for 1, hitting a line drive off Eric Johnson in the 1991

Cal State Northridge California State University, Northridge (CSUN or Cal State Northridge) is a public university in the Northridge neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. With a total enrollment of 38,551 students (as of Fall 2021), it has the second largest u ...

Alumni game. In 1989, while managing the Welland Pirates in the New York-Penn League, Washington was suspended after knocking the home plate umpire to the ground during an argument.

References

External links

, o
RetrosheetU L Washington baseball cards
{{DEFAULTSORT:Washington, U L 1953 births Living people African-American baseball coaches African-American baseball managers African-American baseball players American expatriate baseball players in Canada Baseball coaches from Oklahoma Baseball players from Oklahoma Hawaii Islanders players Jacksonville Suns players Kansas City Royals players Kingsport Royals players Major League Baseball shortstops Memphis Chicks players Minor league baseball managers Montreal Expos players Omaha Royals players Orlando Juice players People from Atoka County, Oklahoma Pittsburgh Pirates players San Bernardino Pride players San Jose Bees players Tiburones de La Guaira players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Vancouver Canadians players 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American sportspeople